The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1887-04-22

the merriment of the mischievouS girls of Ma
drd who were being amorously pinched every
once in while by the soldiers of the line-and
in regard to gallantry the Spanish soldier is quite
a match for his French brother.
Then you would hear bursts of feigned indig-
nation-Vaya " al demonio (Go to the devil,
endless bursts of laughter-and whacks with
fans that would send helmets and aockades roll
ing in the dust.
Suddenly the crowd hats and great silence
falls. A close carriage, with blinds down,
corted by picket Of civil guards, slowly passes
through the press. We follow it without
hurrying ourselves.
In little while the place of execution appears
before me. thronged with multitude swaylng
like a tide, and up from the sea of heads energies
the white mass Of the scaffold.
l approach.
Lying upon stool covered with snow-white
cloth is the earrote itself, sh,mmering like a
crown of steel. In a little while the executioner
will attach it to post. against which the GRIM
ina is to be fastened The final preparations
consumed considerable time, so that was we'll
able to make a leisurely examination Of the sin
lister locality whittier curiosity had drawn me
for the purpose of studying the physiognomy of
the great pushing or squeezing crowd AS al
ways, and in all places, the women were the
most numerous.
The plaza where the execution took place is on
very nigh ground, and the pure air one breathes
there must increase the criminals regret for
life at the moment when his respiration is about
to be cut short forever The houses surround
terspaced Between them stranger who loves
classic landscapes can obtain a good view of the
sun burned and yellow plains of Nueva Castillo
and the blush mountains of Guadamara in the
horizon
The deploy of military forces about the scat
fold wss considerable. | counted no less than
six detacnments of different corps. There were
lancers with Prussian- shaped helmets of brass
gendarmes in black. with yellow straps and belts
and white trimmings: blue uniformed light cav
airy. infantry, provincial guards with red caps
The martial department. of these men, nearly all
young, strong and handsome impressed me very
much. What is that little bell hear ringing
so longs' | asked my neignbor, an old Navarrese
peasant, whom Gustave Dore would nave taken
for model. and Who while chewing the end of
extinguished cigar, kept passing the beads of
rosary rosa bstw his thin hi. bony fingers,
Then [ saw coming toward me through the
crowd sort of sacristan, wearing a red skull
cap, and carrying in front Of him. supported by
a strap passed around his mex. great green
box like a barrel organ. 1t was really shaped.
however. like gigantic poor-box. such as are
placed in churches and on its side were painted
in great, big letters the words: "Paz Carload"
("Peace and charity."l
Drop an aims into it." the old man said to me;
sit will go to have said for the repose of
the soul of Alvarez Olivia"
Certainly old friend" I answered. Here
are ten reales. You drop them in for me. San
lsidor will be just thankful to if
put them in myself" The way the old man
looks at could not be described. While
pretended to look another way / see tie silver
coin vanish into the depth Of his Navarrese vest
pocket Poor fellow! He will live on that for
whole week. The Spaniard is sober Will the
soul of Alvarez Olivia be any worse OFF, Hardly,
think for the old peasant will be sure. during
the rest of his life, to pray for the soul of the
rascal who brought him such good luck
Now there is great movement around the
scaffold. The soldiers close their ranks and
three men approach the scaffold. One of them
ascends it. 1t is the executioner. He is thin,
low-szed, and looks about forty years old.
While waiting for his victim he keeps walking
nervously to and fro with his hands behind his
back, and his head down. From time to time he
stops to look at the argola 1.-THE ''garrote") with
a suspicious expression of countenance Per
haps he is afraid Of the power of resistance pos
sessed by the cervical vertibrfe of Alvarez, and
is therefore afraid of losing his bounty.
Noisy as it was little while ago. the crowd
now suddenly becomes silent. Some women are
turning pale; and one can feel that nervous
excitement weighs upon the crowd. A low
rumbling is heard. 1t is the black carriage
that bears the condemned man. 1t stops at the
foot of the scaffo!d; and the criminal is soon
painfully climbing the twelve high steps Of the
dismal scaffold, leaning on the arm of priest.
Another priest precedes him. lifting very
high immense crucifx. toward which
the condemned man strives to turn
got twenty-five years old, and it was believed
that the savage energy he had Displayed in
committing his crime, together with his v.gor-
Gus youth, would give him strength to face
death. But nothing OF the kind Is now shown
by him. and really it was too much to expect of
man who knew his fate forty-eight hours ago,
and who. while listening to the funeral chants
in the prison chape, must have behed all kinds
| of hideous visions passing before him.
This rule OF obliging the condemned to listen
| during the two nights preceding his execution to
! an ,nterminable series of prayers, requiems De
! Profundis hants uttered for the repose of his
h, oil fcl1 fypir a1c 70 M
/ something atrocious; and see in it last
ves,ge OF the ferocous medieval mysticism of
| Spain, with all its unconscious cruelty. AS
| stood on an elevation overlooking the scaffold
| was able to observe all the details
| of the last scene of the tragedy. The
condemned man mechanically yielded
himself up to the executioner. The
latter sat him down at the foot of the post with
| his back to it, and then tied his hands and fee,
/ hard and fast He did all this without hurryine
| himself in the least, and with all that dienifed
| indifference which characterizes the Spanish
| functionary in the discharge of his duty II the
/ preparations had lasted few seconds
| longer believe l should have lost all OF my
| selfcontrol. could my heart humping in my
| breast. and every moment or two something like
| a veil came before my eyes,
You could not hear even whisper in the
! crowd. While of the priests pressed a
crucifx to the coorless lips OF the sufferer, an
| other was murmnring words OF consolation and
| hope into his ear. But the wretchec man was
waxen pallor, and his eyes. as they wandered
over the ocean of faces bnfore him, already
seemed dim with the dimness of death.
He started considerably when the executioner
4 placed the iron collar about his neck. and OBJ
| served his mouth contract. Then, however, {
| white covering thrown over his features bic
them from further observation. The execu
| toner then gave two or three turns OF the screws
connected with the instrument OF death. Tn,
bones of the neck cracked a long trembling rar
through the whole body. the arms twisted out
ward the legs inward. Alvarez Olivia was dead
The priests took off their square caps. as il Il
salute the soul passing by. and the executions
removed the covering that concealed the dea,
mans face. That face, which had been SO pail,
moment before. was now purple. The tuml
fed tongue protruded from the mouth and tn
bloody eyes had spurted out Of their sockets
The head had fallen slightly toward the RICH
shoulder, and the black inter. with white cross
that had been placed upon it, seemed about t
fall off
The crowd eDbei away silently. evidensl
much affected. while two gendarLaes with rifle
49, a. II 1kAw